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Learning & Development for the
State of Colorado
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In this Issue:
- HR Academy Updates
- Spotlight on Joanna Logan
- Inside the LXP Platform Interview
- Collaborating with SMEs
- Learning Leader Survey
- Articulate Google Chat
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 The HR Academy is entering its next chapter under LDC, with new leadership and fresh course development underway. Karen Capaldi (Program Administrator) and Josh Beryl (Training Specialist/Instructional Designer) have stepped into their new roles and are already building on the strong foundation created by Abigail Nguyen (now with CDLE). This foundational work produced the first three Academy courses—Introduction to State Government, Navigating HR Resources, and State of Colorado HR Foundations—which set the stage for the next phase.
So, what’s next? This fiscal year, the team plans to deliver six new courses, beginning with a much-needed refresh of the Statewide Personnel Certification Program (SPCP). In partnership with Subject Matter Experts (SMEs), the team is updating the three core topics: Selection, Job Evaluation, and Personal Services Contracts. These updates, along with the SPCP exam, will be hosted on the Learning Experience Platform (LXP) for easier access and navigation.
In addition, the HR Academy team is developing three courses under the Total Rewards umbrella: An Introduction to Compensation, Benefits, and Leave. As you can imagine, there is a substantial amount of information to navigate, uncover, and organize.
You’re probably wondering, “Are these courses available right now?” Not yet, but the team is working to finalize the first three courses while diligently distilling complex topics into meaningful and purposeful e-learnings designed to empower our Human Resource professionals. The overarching goal of HR Academy is to standardize training for new HR professionals within our decentralized environment here at the State of Colorado.
Once launched, HR Academy will be mandatory for new HR professionals and also available to other State employees for development and career advancement opportunities. Being an HR professional with the State has its own nuances and can differ significantly from the private sector and other public entities. The HR Academy team is committed to supporting and empowering new HR professionals through engaging learning experiences. Stay tuned for future information and release dates.
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Tell us about yourself:
Hi everyone, I’m Joanna Logan, and I am the Manager of Learning and Development for the State of Colorado. For the last eleven years, I’ve worked in public service and have focused on creating training programs that help employees grow and better serve our communities. I’m passionate about making learning experiences practical, accessible, and connected to real workplace challenges.
What do you like to do in your free time?
Outside of work, I enjoy baking delicious treats, exploring new places, unwinding with a good game, and making memories with my husband and daughter.
Is there a unique travel experience you’ve had?
In the summer of 2021 when most everything was still shut down due to the pandemic, a small window opened up for my mom and I to take a trip to Rome, Italy. Visitor access was restricted to a few countries leaving typically crowded monuments, piazzas, and cathedrals nearly empty. The empty streets and halls created an eerie and unique experience, making it feel as though I received a private tour everywhere we went.
What is your favorite tool to use when you support employees with their professional development? Why?
The ATD Talent Development Capability Model is a valuable, free tool I often recommend to my team. I appreciate this self-assessment for its focus on L&D-specific skills such as organizational development, learning sciences, project management, technology, and evaluation. It helps my team to articulate their areas for growth, allowing us to create tailored development plans. This model also assists in coaching employees who are pursuing promotional opportunities by identifying their existing skills.
What was your dream job as a kid, and how has that changed?
When I was young I really wanted to be a marine archeologist. I was convinced it would be scuba diving in shipwrecks and coral reefs every day. As I got older, actually learned to scuba dive, and realized I lived in landlocked Colorado, that dream faded. However, I still love the ocean and would like to retire to a tiny beach house where I could sit with a good book and listen to the waves.
What is your go-to song when you want to have a dance party by yourself?
“Here it Goes Again” by OK Go has been part of many of my dance parties.
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Inside the Platform: An Interview with Matthew Knight on the LXP |
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 Karen Capaldi, DPA: Hello, and welcome! Today, we're sitting down with Matthew Knight, the statewide learning experience platform (LXP) administrator for the State of Colorado here at Department of Personnel & Administration (DPA). Matt, can you tell us a bit about your role?
Matthew Knight, DPA: Good morning. My role is to deploy the enterprise system known as the Learning Experience Platform or LXP. This platform was originally intended to connect agencies for compliance training, but our vision is broader: creating opportunities for staff to upskill and grow their careers.
Wins and Challenges
Karen Capaldi, DPA: Can you give us a brief overview of the LXP and its wins and challenges so far?
Matthew Knight, DPA: Absolutely. The LXP is designed with the end user in mind. Unlike a learning management system (LMS), which is typically used by administrators to push training to users, the LXP empowers users to find training that supports their own professional goals.
Wins:
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Vast Training Opportunities: Over 5,000 additional training opportunities to approximately 33,000 state employees.
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User-Friendly Experience: A modern, intuitive interface that makes training easy to navigate and keeps employees engaged by helping them find what interests them.
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Reporting Capabilities: Strong reporting tools for agencies to see what kinds of training and skills their users are seeking.
Challenges:
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Limited Customization: A major challenge early on was that the LXP's customization options weren’t as extensive as those in an LMS. Many features were applied system-wide, making it difficult to tailor features to the needs of specific divisions or users.
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Email Notifications: The email notification system proved difficult to manage. Although we could create custom templates, we had no control over frequency—something agencies consistently wanted to adjust differently.
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The LXP and LMS: A Powerful Partnership
Karen Capaldi, DPA: You mentioned the LMS differs from the LXP. Can you explain that difference?
Matthew Knight, DPA: An LMS is administrator-driven—great for mandatory training to ensure compliance.
The LXP, on the other hand, is user-driven. It's an entire experience for the learner, suggesting training based on their skills and interests through a machine learning function.
We've connected the two platforms using Cornerstone's Galaxy connector and unified navigation, which is a unique move. This integration blends the strengths of both systems: the administrator's ability to push out mandatory training and the user's ability to find and take training that interests them.
A Positive Impact on the Employee Experience
Karen Capaldi, DPA: What excites you most about this integration?
Matthew Knight, DPA: For me, the most exciting part is creating a one-stop shop for staff. As a ten-year state employee, I've had to log into five different portals to complete my training. This new system gives agencies the ability to combine everything into a single portal, which provides a much better onboarding experience for new hires. It's about making the process easy for employees, which in turn supports the State of Colorado’s goal of being an employer of choice.
Karen Capaldi, DPA: And how does this make a positive impact on training and development?
Matthew Knight, DPA: It's an empowerment tool. Once mandatory training is complete, employees have thousands of opportunities at their fingertips to guide their career path. This platform also helps with statewide initiatives, such as the adoption of artificial intelligence tools, by providing a central place for users to find and take the necessary training.
Final Advice
Karen Capaldi, DPA: In closing, what advice would you give a new or a long-tenured state employee about the LXP?
Matthew Knight, DPA: My advice would be: have the LXP work for you. It has thousands of training courses available. Take advantage of this opportunity to consume as much as you can to help you springboard to where you want to be in your career with the State.
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Acacia Ramirez, CDLE Training Specialist
In my work as an instructional designer, subject-matter experts are often key to my success in developing effective learning solutions. To make sure my relationship with SMEs is productive and collaborative, I’ve honed in on a few important practices: defining my process and needs, preparing for delays and unresponsiveness, and establishing positive rapport.
Define My Process and Needs
If you haven’t worked with the SME before, you need to educate them on your process and expectations (yes, even if they’ve been a SME for others!). Here are a few questions I like to consider:
- How involved will they be? Are they optional, necessary, or critical to the project?
- What type of feedback do I need?
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- How will I implement their ideas?
- Here is where you can explain your expertise in transforming their knowledge into engaging learning.
- How much time will they have to provide feedback?
Prepare for Delays and Unresponsiveness
Delays and unresponsiveness can be frustrating, but there’s almost always a good reason for it. I assume that the SME wants to provide timely feedback but they’ve encountered barriers. I’m also prepared to proceed without them if their feedback is nonessential. I provide deadlines to SMEs as a kindness. Doing so can help them organize it on their list of priorities and improve responsiveness. When possible, I include a cushion between the deadline and when I need it back.
I’ve also found that standardized feedback forms can reduce barriers SMEs face in providing input. Asking specific questions instead of sending whole documents, and using templates for design and scope documents, storyboards, and feedback forms can further simplify their role in the process.
Establish Positive Rapport
We can prevent sour relationships by ensuring SMEs understand our process and feel valued. I start by communicating clearly and honestly, listening actively, and responding graciously. If I can, I meet with the SME early on to learn more about them, define the process, and share what I hope to learn from them. I find out how they prefer to communicate and how they see themselves fitting into the process. If an idea is out of scope or needs adjustments for learners, I’m kind and honest about it.
Most importantly, I express gratitude for the time and energy they’ve dedicated to working with me.
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Learning Leader Survey Review
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 Thank you for sharing your valuable feedback in the Learning Leader survey recently. Your input is critical in helping us shape both future meetings and serve this community overall. We've compiled the results and are excited to announce some changes based on what we heard from you.
Meeting Cadence and Scheduling
The feedback showed a preference for two things: quarterly meeting schedule and a Thursday afternoon meeting.
Based on this feedback, we're keeping the Learning Leader Forum quarterly and changing the time. Please be on the lookout for a new calendar invitation for future Learning Leader meetings.
The first meeting will be moved to Oct. 16 — 2:00 – 3:30 p.m.
Want to attend the Learning Leader Forums? Email dpa_ldc@state.co.us to be added to the calendar invitation!
Future Meeting Agendas
We'll continue to share meeting agendas ahead of time. Based on survey feedback, we will strive to put informational updates at the beginning of meetings. This allows all to prioritize that essential information, even if someone needs to leave early. We'll save networking, sharing resources, and other collaborative opportunities to the latter part of the meeting.
We also asked what topics you are interested in discussing. The top three topics of interest were:
- Training Best Practices
- Instructional Design
- E-Learnings
We will work to incorporate these topics into upcoming meetings.
How We Can Support You
Your feedback also highlighted a desire for more opportunities for networking and ways to share best practices and resources. In the coming months, we will share more opportunities to do just that!
In the meantime, if your organization has a community of practice or collaboration group for trainers or L&D professionals, whether it is formal or informal, please reach out to allie.rasmussen@state.co.us! We would love to hear what you are already doing.
Thank you again for your participation and feedback. We are excited for what is ahead!
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New! Articulate Users
Community Google Chat Space
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 LDC and the Organizational Development & Training (ODT) team at CDLE have launched an interagency Google Chat Space for learning and development professionals using Articulate software.
This is a space for Articulate users across the state to connect in real time. Have a question about Storyline or Rise? Need a second set of eyes on a tricky project? This is the perfect place to find a thought partner, share resources, and swap tips with fellow e-learning developers using Articulate.
Interested in joining? Login to Google Chat with your State login and join the group called 'Articulate Users Community - Learning & Development.'
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